I swung by Jadis on Friday, which is located at 42 Rivington St on the Lower East Side. It s one step below the sidewalk, so it feels a little bit like a basement. A very cute basement.
The atmosphere was quiet for a Friday evening, which I wasn t expecting. There was some soft, mellow music playing, which later evolved into French hip hop. All of the walls are brick, the floor is concrete, there is a heavy wooden door at the entrance, and the ceilings look like they just might be original. Apparently there is an outdoor seating area in the back, which I could only catch a glimpse of from my table. From what I could see, it looked cool and I heard several girls asking if they could sit out there when they walked in. The bar area was cutely decorated with some dried flower arrangements and all of the plates and glasses were stored on shelves behind the bar, so it looked like a homey kitchen.
Jadis has a French wine bar feel to it, but wines from all over the world were featured on their wine list. Wines are $7 to $12 by the glass with bottles starting at $25 and no more than $110. They also offer a carafe of wine, which is priced between $18 and $29. The bar has a very clean pricing strategy. They have great specials as well: happy hour is Tuesday - Saturday from 5-7pm, and on Mondays bottles of wine over $30 are 30% off.
I ordered the 2011 Domaine Chene Macon La Roche from the Burgundy region of France. It had a slight barley scent to it, almost like beer but a touch sweeter. It was a little toasty on the nose as well. It tasted very much like lychee with a thin sweetness to it and a nice bitter note. It was an interesting wine, but good. Shortly after I ordered my wine, I noticed that there was a $15 minimum on credit cards, which always annoys me. But I was happy to order a cheese plate to make up the difference.
The service was what made Jadis feel different for me. Although she was friendly each time she came to my table, the noticeable overtone of the waitress' attitude was that she thought I was awkward and weird. Which I totally am The distasteful look she gave me while I was holding my camera in front of my face was the first clue. Ok, so I was the only one in the bar for a while and I was taking pictures like a stalker. And sure, I devoured a cheese plate meant for three, but try not to make it so obvious that you think I m an oddball. I may not understand your Spanish, but I sure can read the body language of you and the bartender both looking over at me at the same time. Try to be more subtle in the future.
I don t know why I'm giving Jadis this rating because I felt like Quasimodo while I was there, but it has a cool, yet quaint and cozy atmosphere, as well as a good selection of wines at a great price point. If you behave overtly sane you might enjoy yourself here a little more than I did. I, begrudgingly, give it a rating of 3.6 out of 5 glasses.
I felt too awkward to take a good picture of the outside once I left. And that's saying a lot.
The cute bar area
Isn't it always?